The Takashi Miike Discussion Thread... [Archive] - Movie Fan Central Discussion Forums

Psychocandy

07-07-2003, 06:23 PM

Takashi Miike is many things but one thing he ain't is workshy. The guy throws out anything from 4-6 movies a year. With this kind of workrate you would be forgiven for thinking that the movies must be shoddy pieced of low-budget crap. This just ain't the case. I don't claim to have seen anything close to all of his movies but i've seen a bunch and found something appealing and worthwhile in even the least of them.

I've seen the following so far...

Fudoh - 4.5/5

A brutal and bizarre Yakuza movie in which a group of school kids led by the son of the head of a Yakuza family decide to seize control of the city. How do they do this? By the most violent means imaginable. Very inventive and containing a fair number of jaw-dropping moments. This is NOT a movie to watch with your parents (good advice with regards to just about any Miike movie).

Audition - 5/5

One of the best horror movies i've seen in recent years. I'm not gonna say anything about the plot. If you haven't seen it and enjoy the sort of cerebral horror that David Cronenberg produces then I urge you to check this out. Stunning.

Dead Or Alive - 4/5

Another Miike Yakuza flick and the first in a trilogy of sorts (the stories within each movie are totally unconnected but there are elements and themes that carry over). The insanity that bookends this movie has to be seen to be believed. The first ten minutes are unbelievably kinetic whilst the last ten is beyond insane.

City Of Lost Souls - ?/5

Any movie featuring a CGI cockfight homage to The Matrix is just screaming out to be seen. It's been a while since I saw this and I was pissed as a fart at the time so i'll refrain from further comment. From what I can remember it was pretty damn cool though.

Full Metal Gokudo - 3.5/5

Robocop, Takashi Miike style. This was one insane flick. Pretty tongue in cheek for much of the movie with some very risque moments resulting from the man/machine having been fitted with an enormous cock. This is a lot of fun.

Ichi The Killer - 5/5

The version I saw was the Hong Kong release that was missing 20 minutes. I'll soon be getting a hold of an uncut version. Even missing 20 minutes though, this movies was an orgy of violence and bad taste the like of which I haven't seen...EVER!!! Amazing...but not to everyones taste. The sadistic and explicit nature of the violence and the amount of it directed at women puts a lot of people off this flick. The BBFC in the UK had real problems with it and ended up cutting three+ minutes out. I wasn't terribly surprised.

Visitor Q - 5/5 (i'll just repost my review from the foreign horror forum)

I'm going to start this review by stating point blank that this is not a movie for everyone. Featured perversions include incest, necrophilia, bondage, the anal insertion of foreign objects (in this case a microphone), a son who beats his mother on a daily basis, drug use and scenes of lactation that have to be seen to be believed. On the other hand the movie is also funny as hell, well shot and directed and features some excellent performances from all involved. Takashi Miike, the critically lauded director of Audition, generally directs more movies in a year than most directors manage to produce in a decade (or even a lifetime). Thus far I have seen the aforementioned Audition and several of the Yakuza (the Japanese mafia) flicks he's so fond of creating. He seems to revel in throwing contentious and often brutally shocking images at the audience the like of which would normally have a viewer throwing up. Somehow, though, he succeeds in making the more shocking scenes palatable by placing them in an entertaining and skillfully directed framework (although the scenes of extreme misogyny and violence towards women that seem to feature in many of his movies are a little hard to take). I honestly didn't think it would be possible for him to shock me more than he already did upon my viewing of Ichi The Killer. Visitor Q did an admirable job of shaking me free of that particular idea. Much of the movie is shot on hand held Digital Video, a method that in this movie only makes what you are watching more disturbing and realistic. If you are a fan of movies that don't mind tackling subjects that the majority of society consider to be taboo and that do so with lashings of sick humour and frankly gobsmacking amounts of violence then you should definitely seek out the movies of Takashi Miike. Visitor Q is definitely one of his best. 4.5/5

So...has anyone seen any of Miike's other flicks? I'm especially interested in any info about Graveyard Of Honour, Gozu, Dead Or Alive 2 & 3 and pretty much anything else anyone might have seen. Much of his work remains unavailable to western audiences. Perhaps it's only his best stuff that is getting released and much of the rest is substandard. I guess time (and hopefully more releases) will tell.

bob

07-07-2003, 09:43 PM

Can you recommend a good Miike film to start with? And, more importantly, are these films actually good? Or are they just plotless gorefests in the spirit of The Evil Dead?

Deckard

07-08-2003, 02:51 AM

Far more than just plotless gorefest Takeshi Miike's films are psychological thrillers that foprce you to think and question what you witness.

A good place to start would be-
AUDITION, DEAD or ALIVE and ICHI: THE KILLER...these 3 are superb examples of his work and will give you a taste of this great directors , style, depth and understanding of the filmmaking process.

DaveyJoeG

07-08-2003, 02:52 AM

Originally posted by bob
Can you recommend a good Miike film to start with? And, more importantly, are these films actually good? Or are they just plotless gorefests in the spirit of The Evil Dead?

I can't speak for Miike's other films but Audition is a surprisingly good horror movie with well developed characters and a compelling story. Great performances, slick direction, a good watch. It's that much scarier because you get attached to the characters in the film. I also hear it's not as gory as his other films so I would say Audition is a good place to start.

SAI

07-08-2003, 03:40 AM

I've only seen Audition and Ichi (in the cut British print) and really liked both, can anyone tell me which of his other movies are available on r1 or r2 dvd?

Also I highly recommend the Premier Asia dvd of Ichi, yes it is cut but the quality of the print, the commentary and the second disc of extras go some way to redress the balance

pink

07-08-2003, 10:39 AM

this Has been nagging me for quite some time, and sounds hopeless at most, but I have a somewhat opinionated question...I have some cult films, along the lines of Battle Royale's content, and I was wondering who the most violent Asian director is so I could look in to his films...I knew the answer a while ago but I forgot, so, any ideas...?

BadCoverVersion

07-08-2003, 11:51 AM

Audition, Ichi The Killer and Visitor Q are my favourites...but anything "Takashi" usually strikes a chord. The bloke grabs you by the throat and shovels this mind-blowing shit down your neck...and I admire that. He's one WARPED sonofagun, and I admire that also.

Audition is a modern horror masterpiece...beautifully filmed, tense, engrossing, twisted...and the last ten minutes...RUDDY FUCK, they are SUPER. I love the mood of this film...it IS romantic, call me an oddball, but I sincerely believe Audition to be a beautiful layered love story...with a filthy underbelly.

Ichi The Killer is one fucked-up gory ride...it's definitely NOT for the faint at heart...and somehow, I can't see feminists and pacifists alike being overly fond of this mashed-up brain-fuck of a film. The musak is spectacular, and the cinematography kicks some major arse, and the gruesome bits are quite insane. Ooooooh, that PUNCH in the mouth made me wince like a little girly scaredy-cat.

Everything Psycho has said has been spot-on thus far, and I've nothing to add to his splendid review of Visitor Q...Fudoh and Full Metal Gokudo, I have not yet seen :(, but I definitely plan to purchase them as soon as...

Dead Or Alive and Dead Or Alive 2 mashed my head a wee bit on first sitting...but after purchasing the DVD's, I've grown to love them. City of Lost Souls is the weakest I have seen thus far, but it's still awesome entertainment, and those cheeky karate-chopping chickens are quite superb...the MUSAK is a highlight once again. Ballsy Japanese poppy-punk.

So in conclusion,

City Of Lost Souls - 7/10
Dead Or Alive - 9/10
Dead Or Alive 2 - 9/10
Ichi The Killer - 9/10
Visitor Q - 9/10
Audition - 10/10

Takashi Miike RULES.

:)

Fisting Ackbar

07-09-2003, 08:14 AM

While I find his films to be far from masterpieces, I get a kick out of his style and perverted content.

can anyone tell me which of his other movies are available on r1 or r2 dvd?

I know of a few others that are available like the DEAD OR ALIVE series, VISITOR Q, FUDOH: THE NEXT GENERATION, but I don't really know where you could buy them. Try looking at amazon.com perhaps.

bowieee

07-09-2003, 01:56 PM

I just finished watching The Happiness of the Katakuris and I seriously think it may be one of the most entertaining movies I have ever seen. It is a giant musical/horror spoof that had me grinning and laughing all the way through. Not only did it bring humour tot he plate it also brought a wee bit of drama that actually made me feel fuzzy inside. There isn't much gore to be found in this one unlike the directors other films but trust me when i say this has to be watched to be believed. It may be the ultimate party movie complete with sing alongs and dancing corpses. Find this movie, Watch it, Love it. It deserves to be a cult classic by every means.

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000083C5D.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

Oh and I watched audition for the first time last night. All I can say is Holy Shit. That movie scared the pants off of me. I'm really starting to like this directors work.

scottish-movie-freak

07-09-2003, 03:38 PM

I was pleasantly suprised with The Happiness Of The Katakuris, it was a last minute thing- nothing else to see at the cinema but I enjoyed it tremendously! Demented...but fun.

I've watched half of Audition and have become intrigued, I'll get round to the second half sooner or later.

bob

07-09-2003, 05:55 PM

Happiness of the Katukuris sounds very intriguing...

If I'm reading you guys correctly, I should probably start with Audition and Ichi the Killer, right?

The Delfonics

07-09-2003, 06:24 PM

Miike is alright, nothing special. I was hoping to like his stuff alot more. My friend showed me Fudoh, Audition and Dead or Alive in one night and I own Ichi.

Fudoh - 5/10
Audition - 7/10
Dead or Alive - 7/10
Ichi The Killer - 7/10

Also how do you pronounce "Miike"? Do you pronounce its Mike as in the engish name or do you pronounce it like "Me"+"K".

bowieee

07-09-2003, 08:49 PM

Ugh....... I just watched city of lost souls and I must say this might be the worst movie I have seen in months. what a fucking let down....... The plot made no sense, the violence was pretty sparse during most of this. I seriously have not been this bored in a movie for weeks. Well 2 hits and one miss isn't such a bad track record for this direcotr and me. :)

Ren Hoek

07-09-2003, 09:45 PM

I've been a Miike fan ever since I saw VISITOR Q and AUDITION. And I basically agree with Psychocandy and la Signora Cover Version... even though these 10/10 or 5/5 ratings a wee tad too generous for my taste ;)

However, his recent movie THE HAPPINESS OF THE KATAKURIS did nothing for me. Sure, it's interesting to see the director's approach to a new genre (horror-musical-dramedy-whatever), but this movie simply failed to entertain me. I loved the clay-mation stuff at the beginning, and got a kick out of one or two other scenes (***minor SPOILER***the sumo ringer's fall out of the window is priceless***). I think that Miike tried a little bit two hard to be off one's rocker with this flick and produced just a big, silly, pointless, and trashy (but not in a good way!) crap-o-rama. It could have worked for a 60-70 minutes long feature, but sitting through this mess for almost two hours was really painful at times. Maybe a lil' bit more violence would've helped (there's virtually no gore in this flick).

Fisting Ackbar

07-09-2003, 10:23 PM

Originally posted by The Delfonics
Also how do you pronounce "Miike"? Do you pronounce its Mike as in the engish name or do you pronounce it like "Me"+"K".

From what I heard you pronounce it the same as "Mickey".

bowieee

07-09-2003, 10:57 PM

Originally posted by RenHoek

However, his recent movie THE HAPPINESS OF THE KATAKURIS did nothing for me. Sure, it's interesting to see the director's approach to a new genre (horror-musical-dramedy-whatever), but this movie simply failed to entertain me. I loved the clay-mation stuff at the beginning, and got a kick out of one or two other scenes (***minor SPOILER***the sumo ringer's fall out of the window is priceless***). I think that Miike tried a little bit two hard to be off one's rocker with this flick and produced just a big, silly, pointless, and trashy (but not in a good way!) crap-o-rama. It could have worked for a 60-70 minutes long feature, but sitting through this mess for almost two hours was really painful at times. Maybe a lil' bit more violence would've helped (there's virtually no gore in this flick).

I couldn't get enough of the movie. It didn't take itself seriously and in the end played out as a priceless movie in my eyes.

BadCoverVersion

07-10-2003, 05:01 AM

Originally posted by bowieee
Ugh....... I just watched city of lost souls and I must say this might be the worst movie I have seen in months. what a fucking let down....... The plot made no sense, the violence was pretty sparse during most of this. I seriously have not been this bored in a movie for weeks. Well 2 hits and one miss isn't such a bad track record for this direcotr and me. :)

True...it has absolutely NO plot whatsover...and I couldn't tell you anything about it, apart from the "foul play".

The first time I saw it, I just got bored and switched it off after about 10 minutes...the second time, well...I do believe mind-expanding substances may have marred my judgement just a tad...and it was fun.

It beats Free Willy.

bowieee

07-10-2003, 07:58 PM

Originally posted by BadCoverVersion

It beats Free Willy.

grrrrreat I just got that michael jackson song stuck in my head now.

Excuse me while I cry myself to sleep. :)

JCR

07-20-2003, 03:11 PM

I can't be bothered with major reviews but i'll say:

Shinjuku triad society 8/10
Rainy dog 7/10
Dead or alive 9/10
Andromedia 6/10 (probably the strangest childrens film ever made)
The Bird people of China 9/10
Fudoh: New generation 9/10 (I've only seen the bbfc cut though)
Dead or alive 2: Birds 9.5/10 (my fav. Miike)
Visitor Q 9/10
Dead or alive Final 3/10 (The ending is great but the rest is pretty crap to be honest)
Audition 8/10
Happiness of the Katukuris 9/10
Ichi the Killer 6/10 (I dunno it just didn't push my buttons. Peter Jackson and several others are better at extreme gore flicks than Miike)
City of lost souls 7/10
Graveyard of honor 6/10 (average film but the "out of bullets" scene is really funny)

Easily my favourite director now. Did anyone else notice Ichi, shinjuku and city of lost souls all have similar final shots. I wonder what thats supposed to mean. The good thing with Miike is if you don't like a film of his there's always another one coming soon- hey Ley Lines is out here next week.

bob

07-21-2003, 11:35 PM

Okay, for no apparent reason I'm suddenly very excited to see his movies again. I have two questions:

Which of his films are available on Region 1 or Region Free NTSC DVD?

If any of the R1 or No Region discs are cut, how bad are the edits?

bob

07-23-2003, 02:23 PM

Wow, I really killed this thread....

Psychocandy

07-23-2003, 02:57 PM

Originally posted by bob
Wow, I really killed this thread....

It's just sleeping...

I'll be getting about 6-8 new Miike movies in a couple of weeks. I'll be posting reviews of each. :D

bowieee

07-23-2003, 04:17 PM

Originally posted by bob
Okay, for no apparent reason I'm suddenly very excited to see his movies again. I have two questions:

Which of his films are available on Region 1 or Region Free NTSC DVD?

If any of the R1 or No Region discs are cut, how bad are the edits?

Bob amazon.com has all his region one movies if you want to check out the list :)

bowieee

07-23-2003, 09:36 PM

Well I just watched Dead or alive for the first time and my head is spinning. This movie may just be too over the top for me.

*spoilers***********

The scene with the girl drowned in her own shit almost made me throw up, I was actually dry heaving, also the scene with the dog and the girl sort of disgusted me as well.

*end spoilers*********

but there were way more than just a handfull of cool secens. The whole intro was like a gory mtv video from hell and the ending is so absurd it cracked me up. All in all this movie has it's highlights but I must be becoming more of a puss in my old age because alot of it sort of disturbed me. Ah Well anyways I understand what Miike was shooting for and he reached his goal. :)

bob

07-23-2003, 10:12 PM

Originally posted by bowieee
Bob amazon.com has all his region one movies if you want to check out the list :)

It's so simple, and yet I never would have thought of it...

Hmm...so most of the films mentioned in this thread are actually available region 1, except Ichi the Killer, but I think I might start off with something a bit less graphic.

bob

07-23-2003, 10:28 PM

Originally posted by Psychocandy
It's just sleeping...

I'll be getting about 6-8 new Miike movies in a couple of weeks. I'll be posting reviews of each. :D

Where do you get them?

JCR

07-24-2003, 05:53 AM

The scene with the girl drowned in her own shit almost made me throw up, I was actually dry heaving, also the scene with the dog and the girl sort of disgusted me as well.

God, if that disturbed you I would stay far far away from Ichi the killer. It's a bit special you see.

bowieee

07-24-2003, 01:36 PM

Originally posted by JCR
God, if that disturbed you I would stay far far away from Ichi the killer. It's a bit special you see.

Oh I have allready made up my mind that ichi might be a wee bit too hardcore for me. :) Thanks for the heads up though.

BadCoverVersion

07-24-2003, 06:53 PM

Originally posted by bowieee
Oh I have allready made up my mind that ichi might be a wee bit too hardcore for me. :) Thanks for the heads up though.

JCR is right...

Ya big wuss.

;)

I won't name the flick for fear of spoiling...but I dry-heaved when I saw a man-beast crawl from a bag and chow down on ladies spew...:(

Psychocandy

07-24-2003, 06:57 PM

Originally posted by BadCoverVersion
I won't name the flick for fear of spoiling...but I dry-heaved when I saw a man-beast crawl from a bag and chow down on ladies spew...:(

I sympathise. BARF!!!

Fisting Ackbar

07-26-2003, 07:53 PM

Originally posted by bob
Where do you get them?

Ebay has tons of his movies. Just do a search on 'Miike'.

JCR

07-28-2003, 04:43 PM

Review: Ley Lines (1999)

Plot: 3 people, bored with country life and fed up with being bullied for being children of asylum seekers move to the big city. But will they soon want to escape from there too?

There are 2 types of miike films the completely outrageous ones (Ichi, fudoh, Q) and the quieter more reflective ones (DOA 2, Rainy dog) and this is in with the second lot, sadly meaning it will never have as much hype as audition and company. Oh course it's miike so we still have stuff that would never get in a mainstream movie (At one point there is a POV shot...from inside a vagina!) Easily the best of the shinjuku triad trilogy this is very well acted with the usual innovative miike style, a great film. There is a minor drawback given there are a couple of scenes in chinese which are not subtitled (I get the point but it does not really work and made me glad mel gibson has decided to put subs on the passion) but still it can't really take away anything from the movie. The final scene is as memorable as the final scenes in dead or alive and visitor Q, and this just confirms miike as my fav director. In fact, like sam jackson said in pulp fiction, every other director isn't even playing the same fuckin sport as miike.

Score: 9 no fuck it I'll give it 10/10. So sue me. It is awesome.

JCR

07-28-2003, 04:45 PM

Double post due to the fact my computer is over 10 years old and appears to be on it's last legs. Bollocks. Sorry.

Psychocandy

07-28-2003, 04:58 PM

Thanks for the review JCR. I'll be throwing a whole bunch of reviews into this thread over the next couple of months. Ley Lines sounds like it's gonna be right up my street. I'm in the mood for sampling some of Miike's more reflective side and I think i'm gonna get just that with Rainy Dog, Ley Lines and Bird People Of China, all of which I should (money permitting) have before the end of August. I notice you counted DOA2 as being one of his more thoughtful movies...didn't see that one coming. The first one, although not as deranged as Ichi or Fudoh, had it's fair share of insane moments (the bookend scenes and a whole bunch throughout). Have you read much about Gozu? It's supposed to be Miike + Cronenberg + Lynch = VERY FUCKING WEIRD (but in a good way). I read that it was one of the highlights of the Cannes Film Festival (Empire and Total Film both mentioned it in a favourable light).

JCR

07-28-2003, 05:44 PM

I notice you counted DOA2 as being one of his more thoughtful movies...didn't see that one coming

Yes. It really should be pointed out DOA birds is very different to the 1st one. For a start the 2 main characters who hated each other in the 1st one are now best friends. DOA 2 is a lot less violent (though its still a bbfc 18). The metro tartan trail for doa 2 is very misleading, making it out to be a balls to the wall action film, it ain't. But I guess the only way to know is to watch it for yerself.

As for gozu, I was very disappointed it is not on at the edinburgh festival. I guess we have to wait for metro tartan, or the ebay bootleggers to get their act together!

DoctorGonzo

08-07-2003, 09:32 PM

I've just watched Dead or Alive, and I can't remember any film that has made me laugh as much as this film. One of the greatest endings I've ever seen.

I'm still grinning because of it, and it's over 24 hours later.

JCR

08-08-2003, 05:17 AM

Read:

http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=15821

Miike and Kitano working on the same film!! This is like Freddy vs Jason. Only real. And better!

DoctorGonzo

08-08-2003, 09:02 AM

That's the best news I've ever read. Thanks!

Psychocandy

08-08-2003, 06:15 PM

Miike and Kitano...on the same movie? I AM SOOOOOOOOOOOO FUCKING HAPPY!!!! :D :D :D :D :D

bob

08-24-2003, 12:16 AM

Just saw Audition...LOVED IT. My grade is currently 8/10, but I can only see it going upwards after repeated viewings, that film has so many layers. I'd just like to thank the people in this thread for recommending that flick, it might lead to a whole world of great films.

P.S. According to the interview on the DVD, Takashi Miike's name is pronounced "ME-A-K".

JCR

08-27-2003, 07:58 AM

I have just read this on AICN regarding Gozu:

"One scene with the Yakuza boss who can only get it up when he has an extremely large spoon stuck up his arse will live with me for a very long time."

And to paraphrase Forrest Gump: "That is all I have to say about that."

The 8 Ball

08-29-2003, 10:34 PM

I recently saw Happiness of The Katakurris. It's the most obscure, bizarre film I've ever seen. But it was fun, fun, fun. Some of it was hilarious, but it did drag a bit.

7/10

I just finished City of Lost Souls. I thought it was so cool. It was stylish, without being ridiculous. It was stylish in a cool, campy way. I loved the characters (Kei, Mario, Lucia). I didn't like the ending though.

9/10

I look forward to exploring Takashi Miike's films more.

Lynn Minmei

08-29-2003, 10:36 PM

Originally posted by JCR
I have just read this on AICN regarding Gozu:

"One scene with the Yakuza boss who can only get it up when he has an extremely large spoon stuck up his arse will live with me for a very long time."

And to paraphrase Forrest Gump: "That is all I have to say about that."

:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

Miike has the ability to shock me over and over and over...

Psychocandy

08-30-2003, 12:30 PM

Originally posted by JCR
I have just read this on AICN regarding Gozu:

"One scene with the Yakuza boss who can only get it up when he has an extremely large spoon stuck up his arse will live with me for a very long time."

And to paraphrase Forrest Gump: "That is all I have to say about that."

All this and a David Cronenberg "body horror" style birth scene. CAN'T FUCKING WAIT!!! :D

bob

08-31-2003, 12:21 PM

Just watched Audition again last night, it actually improves once you know what will happen throughout the film. My grade has been raised to 9/10, a sure purpose.

I'm renting Dead or Alive and City of Lost Souls soon.

JCR

08-31-2003, 03:41 PM

Originally posted by Psychocandy
All this and a David Cronenberg "body horror" style birth scene. CAN'T FUCKING WAIT!!! :D

Hmm...have you seen lars von triers the kingdom? ;)

Psychocandy

08-31-2003, 04:09 PM

Originally posted by JCR
Hmm...have you seen lars von triers the kingdom? ;)

I've seen bits and pieces and I am aware of the birth scene. I keep meaning to buy it. Must do so soon.

bob

08-31-2003, 04:53 PM

Something a bit odd....

On Amazon.com, they have DOA Director's Cut and R-Rated discs. The titles suggest that one is Unrated and one is R-Rated, but under disc details it says both are unrated, the only difference is that the Director's Cut is fullscreen and the R-rated disc is widescreen. Can anyone help clear this up? I'd like to think that I could get a widescreen director's cut...

g05

09-01-2003, 07:59 AM

sorry guys,

i was let down by Ichi. i guess i must of read into the hype too much cause i wanted "more" of everything.

The 8 Ball

09-02-2003, 03:52 AM

Audition, I just saw Audition...whoa.....that was really fucked up. Nothing more disturbing than Audition. But it's great

10/10

...........Audition

Paterfamilias

09-02-2003, 02:09 PM

****Spoilers for Audition ahead*******

I just watched Audition - 3/5.

I liked the way it seems like a "normal" movie for a long time. Certainly long enough to get invested in the characters and become comfortable with the story. And then, bam, it takes an abrupt turn into some pretty disturbing stuff.

The 8 Ball

09-02-2003, 06:25 PM

Also, I'm not sure if I got the last act of Audition correct. Can someone intrepret the last act (everything becoming nightmarish)?

bob

09-02-2003, 07:04 PM

Originally posted by The 8 Ball
Also, I'm not sure if I got the last act of Audition correct. Can someone intrepret the last act (everything becoming nightmarish)?

Miike's commentary on the American Cinematheque R1 disc explains it all:

(SPOILERS)
Up to when Aoyama falls down by being drugged is real. Everything that happens between that and the cut back to Aoyama falling down is a split-second of hallucinations/fantasies caused by the drugs. Everything after that is real, except the quick cut back to Aoyama and Asami in the hotel room, which is a fantasy.

END SPOILERS

Lynn Minmei

09-03-2003, 09:43 PM

Oh wow! I just learned today that Dead or Alive: Final is coming to a Cincinnati art museum this weekend. That's great, but I won't be going. Still, it's cool taht we've got a Miike movie in theaters here.

Psychocandy

09-04-2003, 06:48 PM

A short Visitor Q review...

I'm going to start this review by stating point blank that this is not a movie for everyone. Featured perversions include incest, necrophilia, bondage, the anal insertion of foreign objects (in this case a microphone), a son who beats his mother on a daily basis, drug use and scenes of lactation that have to be seen to be believed. On the other hand the movie is also funny as hell, well shot and directed and features some excellent performances from all involved. Takashi Miike, the critically lauded director of Audition, generally directs more movies in a year than most directors manage to produce in a decade (or even a lifetime). Thus far I have seen the aforementioned Audition and several of the Yakuza (the Japanese mafia) flicks he's so fond of creating. He seems to revel in throwing contentious and often brutally shocking images at the audience the like of which would normally have a viewer throwing up. Somehow, though, he succeeds in making the more shocking scenes palatable by placing them in an entertaining and skillfully directed framework (although the scenes of extreme misogyny and violence towards women that seem to feature in many of his movies are a little hard to take). I honestly didn't think it would be possible for him to shock me more than he already did upon my viewing of Ichi The Killer. Visitor Q did an admirable job of shaking me free of that particular idea. Much of the movie is shot on hand held Digital Video, a method that in this movie only makes what you are watching more disturbing and realistic. If you are a fan of movies that don't mind tackling subjects that the majority of society consider to be taboo and that do so with lashings of sick humour and frankly gobsmacking amounts of violence then you should definitely seek out the movies of Takashi Miike. Visitor Q is definitely one of his best. 4.5/5

bob

09-07-2003, 01:15 PM

Watched City of Lost Souls last night. I liked it a lot, but it's gotta be the weirdest movie I've ever seen. The opening and ending, especially, had me scratching my head. Anyhoo, it'll have a place in my Wish List next to Audition.

For anyone planning on renting or buying it, though, STAY AWAY from the Mei Ah DVD of it. It's a flipper, and the subtitling is full of typos and punctuation errors ("Bum baby burn").

JCR

09-16-2003, 02:13 PM

The forthcoming UK release of Happiness Of The Katakuris looks just lovely. It has, play.com say:

Audio commentary from director Takashi Miike
Interview with the director (33 mins)
'Making Of' documentary (1 hour)
Jamie Russell film notes
Star and director filmographies
Original theatrical trailer
TV spots
Interactive menu
Scene access

It's out on 29th september. Can't wait.

Psychocandy

09-16-2003, 07:04 PM

I just ordered myself copies of the following Takashi Miike movies.

Rainy Dog
Graveyard Of Honour
Sabu
Gozu
The Guys From Paradise
Ley Lines
Blues Harp
Bird People Of China
Dead Or Alive
Dead Or Alive 2
Dead Or Alive 3
Chinese Mafia Wars (Shinjuku Triad Society)
Violent Fire: Deadly Outlaw Rekka

They should arrive in about two weeks, just in time for the weeks holiday i've took on the other side of the September weekend. I'll be posting reviews as I watch them. Anyone who has already seen them...if you could post a rating next to the movie title i'd appreciate it. I'm particularly looking forward to Gozu and Graveyard Of Honour.

JCR

09-16-2003, 07:20 PM

Where d'ya get gozu from? (although actually if it ain't R2 don't tell me because I've only got a R2 player and I'll just get jealous)

The 1st, and probably last, UK public screening of visitor Q is in leeds on oct 3. Leeds council banned Bride of Chucky, but they are allowing Q- this is weeeeeeeeeeird

Romero&Juliet

09-19-2003, 12:47 PM

Oooo, schmoes, have you heard the good news?!

Ichi is getting BIG-aased distro in North America(and in the UK, too, I believe).. Audition is already circulating and I must say, its a dammned good flick!

bob

09-20-2003, 01:21 PM

Originally posted by Romero&Juliet

Ichi is getting BIG-aased distro in North America(and in the UK, too, I believe)..

When? WHEN!?!?

JCR

10-13-2003, 05:18 AM

Metro Tartan in the UK are releasing Graveyard of honor in January, I guess this means they do not think the bbfc will have problems with it. Hmm.....

Miikes next film, out in japan in january is reportedly called "arrival of the ant". God knows what that's about. It's not the one with Kitano in it though. That's the next next one.

bob

10-13-2003, 03:04 PM

Hmm...looks like November is going to be a good month for Miike fans in the U.S. Amazon.com is listing the following releases for November:

Dead or Alive Trilogy
Dead or Alive 2
Dead or Alive Final
Ichi The Killer (Unrated Edition)*
Ichi The Killer (R-Rated)
Ichi The Killer (Director's Cut)*

*Does anyone know what the difference between these two might be?

Interestingly enough, Amazon.com lists all three editions of Ichi as being Unrated (yes even the R-Rated one), and says their running times are all 129 minutes. Does anyone know the Media Blasters website, so I can get to the bottom of this?

Psychocandy

10-13-2003, 06:14 PM

Originally posted by JCR
Metro Tartan in the UK are releasing Graveyard of honor in January, I guess this means they do not think the bbfc will have problems with it. Hmm.....

Miikes next film, out in japan in january is reportedly called "arrival of the ant". God knows what that's about. It's not the one with Kitano in it though. That's the next next one.

Have you seen it? It's fucking amazing. Very nasty though. But there's a lot of good character work in it too. The lead actor is very good. I'll be posting a review after I watch it again. I can think of quite a few scenes that the BBFC may have problems with. It's impossible to second guess the fuckers these days though.

Fisting Ackbar

10-14-2003, 09:56 PM

http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/index.php?Show=697&Template=newsfull

Gaspar Noe and Takashi Miike doing a movie together? That would be sex in it's wildest form!

JCR

10-20-2003, 03:09 PM

A short review of gozu:

I'm a big Miike fan but have to say I was let down a bit by gozu. It seemed to me to be little more than a series of unconnected set pieces rather than a coherently plotted movie, and that it was a gross out movie pretending it's high art. And strangely enough I didn't think it was that gross... The movie dragged a little in the middle and the ending is almost identical to Lars Von Triers The Kingdom and it was done better there. Don't get me wrong, it's funny as hell and well acted but I was just expecting something better. Maybe I just went in to it too hyped up. Ah well I give it 6/10. If you're new to Miike I'd recommend you leave this alone and check out fudoh or dead or alive instead.

bob

11-02-2003, 11:24 AM

Just watched Dead or Alive. Pretty good stuff. I wasn't as disgusted as I thought I'd be (the only scene that really made me flinch was the "shit" scene), but I still think it's a really well made yakuza film. And that ending...caught me a bit off guard.

JCR

11-03-2003, 08:51 AM

I saw audition for the 1st time in years last night and loved it. Consider my score for it raised to 9/10.

DVD company Hong Kong Legends are releasing Ichi the anime in the UK in January. Which is slightly strange because it ain't from hong kong. And it will probably last about 1 minute after the bbfc are finished with it.

FeverDog420

11-06-2003, 09:05 PM

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000083C5D.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

Saw this on Sundance last night. What the hell did I watch? Never seen anything like it. Is a drug-induced haze required to get the most out of it? It was like The Sound of Music meets Shallow Grave meets Dead Alive (if it weren't Japanese, I'd have swown it was an early, lost Peter Jackson flick). 7/10

I didn't get the opening claymation sequence, but I don't think it matters.

JCR

12-01-2003, 06:57 PM

Miikes next is called Kikoku and is out in japan on feb 24th. It is a radical reinvention of......na, only joking, it's just another gangster movie with Riki Takeuchi in it. Well if you're doing something well, you may as well keep doing it.

bob

12-21-2003, 05:13 PM

I'm hoping to get:

Ichi the Killer
Audition
City of Lost Souls
Dead or Alive

Sometime this holiday season, then I'll move on to the second two installments of Dead or Alive, Fudoh, and Visitor Q.

bob

12-21-2003, 05:22 PM

Word to the wise:

deepdiscountdvd.com has Miike's entire R1 catalogue, but you'll only get six titles if you search "Miike" under "director search". You have to search for a few of the titles.

bob

12-27-2003, 09:56 PM

Well, I've got Ichi and Audition now.

I'm torn at which one of his films to get next:

Dead or Alive
City of Lost Souls
Visitor Q
Fudoh

I've seen the first two, and liked them both alright, but I can't find the second two for rent anywhere's.....

What would YOU pick?

Psychocandy

01-04-2004, 08:29 PM

Originally posted by bob
Well, I've got Ichi and Audition now.

I'm torn at which one of his films to get next:

Dead or Alive
City of Lost Souls
Visitor Q
Fudoh

I've seen the first two, and liked them both alright, but I can't find the second two for rent anywhere's.....

What would YOU pick?

Well you've seen Dead Or Alive and City Of Lost Souls so i'd go for one of the latter two. Visitor Q is highly unusual even by Miike standards and i've noticed that even his staunchest supporters have had problems with the movie. I loved it. It's bold and unflinching and often hilarious (especially if your sense of humour runs to the sick end of the spectrum). It's a 5/5 movie in my opinion. As I mentioned though, others hated it. Fudoh is just fun times from start to finish. It's a cartoonishly violent Yakuza thriller and contains some jaw droppingly inventive moments of violence. Once again...5/5. To be safe i'd go for the latter if I were you. I couldn't choose which I enjoyed more as they are very different movies but Fudoh is likely to have more mass appeal (if any Miike movie could possibly be described as having mass appeal). Hope this helps.

bob

01-04-2004, 09:47 PM

Thanks, Psycocandy. I think I'll go with Fudoh, it seems to be better paced than Dead or Alive and City of Lost Souls.

spacemonkey

01-07-2004, 12:49 PM

Whoa, um I certainly feel like Ive been missing out on some crrrrazy stuff.

Im gonna hunt down all these films as soon as possible! This thread has been a sort of eye opener for me! Looks like Im up for some shocking, disturbing and gross imagery! Cool.

spacemonkey

01-09-2004, 02:13 PM

Happniess of the Katikuris, just how funny was that movie! I just finished seeing it last night and that movie put a big smile on my face! Eveytime they burst into song, I was just laughing all the way!

Specially on that scene where they first guy kills himself and they start singing when they find him! I felt like I was watching Little Shop of Horrors or something! Great stuff.

And that impersonator who said he was in service for Queen Elizabeth! And he was also a soldier for the us army! Ha! That guy was funny and the song thats called "I love you" that musical number was great.

A fun movie, but I thought their would be more zombie action in it, but I guess thats not what it really was about. I guess Takashi Miike wanted to make a really really positive and happy movie in his own weird way. Wich he did.

It was insane and Bizarre in deed.

Up next: Audition tonight! Though I saw the previews for it and they look amazing! That scene with that giant bag moving on the background next to a phone was amazingly creepy!

JCR

01-12-2004, 03:19 PM

Originally posted by JCR
DVD company Hong Kong Legends are releasing Ichi the anime in the UK in January. Which is slightly strange because it ain't from hong kong. And it will probably last about 1 minute after the bbfc are finished with it.

My apologies to the bbfc- Ichi the anime has got through untouched; will wonders never cease? ;)

wilykily

01-13-2004, 01:37 PM

Wow what a great fucking thread,
Japanese movies are so much better then american movies

Miike a huge reason

ichi the killer (the japan version of donnie darko in my opinion)
was amazing I loved every minute of it and some of the randomness in it just cracks me up (a naked man being chased down the street for no reason?) 9/10

city of lost souls (maybe miike's best film)

9.5/10 amazing, every person in the world should see this film the pop can scene at the end rocked

audition 6/10 wasn't that good in my opinion it dragged a little long but the last 30 minutes made it worthwhile

dead or alive 1 7/10 maybe the coolest start ever (the guy doing the 15 foot line of coke) it's not his best though

dead or alive 2 5/10 horrible movie

dead or alive final 7/10 okay again some of it was really sweet other parts dragged on

I'm bought visitor Q off of ebay so I should get it soon I really want to see graveyard of honor and gozu

Miike is one of the best directors alive

JCR

01-14-2004, 10:21 PM

It is 3.15am here which seems like the only good time to discuss one of Miikes upcoming movies- zebraman. (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0388556/) Zebraman is a superhero movie about a guy- Sho Aikawa- who dresses up like... you guessed it, a zebra!

http://www.zebraman.jp/movieinfo/still_09.jpg

And no, I'm not joking.

www.zebraman.jp

wilykily

01-15-2004, 03:01 PM

Holy Shit!!!

BadCoverVersion

01-15-2004, 08:06 PM

Originally posted by JCR
My apologies to the bbfc- Ichi the anime has got through untouched; will wonders never cease? ;)

The BBFC are really warming the cockles of me heart nowadays.

They seem to be wising up.

JCR

01-15-2004, 08:48 PM

Hmm, if you say so although Graveyard of Honor, which tartanvideo.com still says has a january release is nowhere to be seen and it ain't listed on play.com. I can't help wondering if this is the bbfc's doing.

On a more upbeat note, Full Metal Yakuza, Miikes insane homage to robocop, has been passed uncut in the uk and will be out on 23rd feb. according to play.com

wilykily

01-17-2004, 11:25 PM

Originally posted by JCR
Hmm, if you say so although Graveyard of Honor, which tartanvideo.com still says has a january release is nowhere to be seen and it ain't listed on play.com. I can't help wondering if this is the bbfc's doing.

On a more upbeat note, Full Metal Yakuza, Miikes insane homage to robocop, has been passed uncut in the uk and will be out on 23rd feb. according to play.com

I this full metal yakuzu any good??

Psychocandy

01-20-2004, 02:21 PM

Originally posted by JCR
On a more upbeat note, Full Metal Yakuza, Miikes insane homage to robocop, has been passed uncut in the uk and will be out on 23rd feb. according to play.com

I wonder if this uncut version will come with or without the censorship by pixelisation that occurs on the R3 bootleg that I have? Annoys the hell out of me.

Oh...and Wilykily...Full Metal Yakuza is very entertaining but the tone is all over the place. It goes from tongue through cheek piss take to violent action movie to pathos at the drop of a hat. If you don't mind the movie being so uneven then you'll likely get a kick out of it. Like most Miike movies, whenever you feel your attention wandering you can pretty much guarantee he has some trick up his sleeve that he'll reveal in due course that'll either have you laughing your ass off or wincing in pain (or more often than not...both at once).

wilykily

01-23-2004, 10:16 AM

Originally posted by Psychocandy
I wonder if this uncut version will come with or without the censorship by pixelisation that occurs on the R3 bootleg that I have? Annoys the hell out of me.

Oh...and Wilykily...Full Metal Yakuza is very entertaining but the tone is all over the place. It goes from tongue through cheek piss take to violent action movie to pathos at the drop of a hat. If you don't mind the movie being so uneven then you'll likely get a kick out of it. Like most Miike movies, whenever you feel your attention wandering you can pretty much guarantee he has some trick up his sleeve that he'll reveal in due course that'll either have you laughing your ass off or wincing in pain (or more often than not...both at once).

awesome thanks for that post I'll be checking that shite out dude

JCR

01-23-2004, 09:35 PM

Originally posted by Psychocandy
I wonder if this uncut version will come with or without the censorship by pixelisation that occurs on the R3 bootleg that I have? Annoys the hell out of me.

The pixelisation will be on every version. Strangest thing, the japanese do not allow full frontal nudity. Miike put a shot of a giant plastic cock in doa 2 to annoy them, and it got pixeled. The japanese censors are fine with Ichi the Killer, the guinea pig series and all the urotsukidoji series, but heavens above no one's allowed so see a penis. As I said, strangest thing.

wilykily

01-25-2004, 12:05 AM

Yeah My friend has a japanese film teacher and I guess in Japan tits are no big deal but you through in some cock and balls or some pink meat and no way it's going to make it passed censors, (no between the legs nudity in Japan)

So what we learn from Japan is you can beat the fuck out of a chick and rape the shit out of her just as long as you don't show the dick or pussy

JCR

01-29-2004, 03:59 PM

Zebraman review: http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=16898

I'm looking forward to that a lot. :)

JCR

02-12-2004, 08:10 PM

Something I thought would never happen is it appears. According to play.com visitor Q is getting a UK dvd release on 26th April!!! Anyone wanna start guessing how much will be cut?

_eraserhead

02-12-2004, 09:55 PM

Visitor Q is one of the most amazing movie I have ever seen. As you can tell it's one of my favorites of all time. Miike is my second favorite filmmaker of all-time right behind Lynch. Wow. EVERYONE should check his shit out, I think he at least has one movie for everyone.

Fisting Ackbar

02-12-2004, 10:35 PM

wilykily

02-13-2004, 01:01 PM

I bought a copy of visitor Q off of ebay from Hong Kong about 2 months ago and I still haven't got the DVD I'm gonna file a complaint soon

_eraserhead

02-13-2004, 03:05 PM

Originally posted by Fisting Ackbar
Considering that it got an R rating in the US (uncut) the BBFC might not be so hard on it.

Actually, the uncut version in the U.S. is not rated and this movie would NEVER pass with an R rating.

Fisting Ackbar

02-14-2004, 10:03 AM

Originally posted by _eraserhead
Actually, the uncut version in the U.S. is not rated and this movie would NEVER pass with an R rating.

Weird, at IMDb it says "Rated R for strong aberrant sexual and violent content, language and drug use". Doesn't mention anything about an uncut, unrated version.

_eraserhead

02-14-2004, 02:44 PM

Originally posted by Fisting Ackbar
Weird, at IMDb it says "Rated R for strong aberrant sexual and violent content, language and drug use". Doesn't mention anything about an uncut, unrated version.

Yup, I own the Tokyo Shock US DVD and it's Not Rated, and I mean a movie that the first scene is a really explicit sex scene..................BETWEEN DAD AND DAUGHTER, I don't think would get R rating.

Psychocandy

02-14-2004, 02:47 PM

Originally posted by JCR
Something I thought would never happen is it appears. According to play.com visitor Q is getting a UK dvd release on 26th April!!! Anyone wanna start guessing how much will be cut?

I don't even try to second guess the BBFC these days. They aren't the same organisation they were even five years ago. They're treatment of Ichi The Killy is an abberation these days. Most stuff gets passed uncut. I reckon you might be surprised at how leniant they are where Visitor Q is concerned. I wouldn't honestly be surprised if they let it pass uncut. There isn't a lot of actual sexual violence in it. This was the main bone of contention with Ichi.

Cronos

02-14-2004, 03:05 PM

ive seen Audition, Ichi the Killer and Happiness of the Katakuris, i love all of them, loads of gore, excellently filmed and have great scripts

i really need to see his other films now, they all look great

_eraserhead

02-14-2004, 03:08 PM

Originally posted by Psychocandy
I don't even try to second guess the BBFC these days. They aren't the same organisation they were even five years ago. They're treatment of Ichi The Killy is an abberation these days. Most stuff gets passed uncut. I reckon you might be surprised at how leniant they are where Visitor Q is concerned. I wouldn't honestly be surprised if they let it pass uncut. There isn't a lot of actual sexual violence in it. This was the main bone of contention with Ichi.

There's one rape/kill scene and a whole lot of necrophelia...NOT ALOT OF VIOLENT SEX!? But, I live int he U.S. so I wouldn't know anything about the BBFC...

_eraserhead

02-14-2004, 03:29 PM

Originally posted by bob
For anyone planning on renting or buying it, though, STAY AWAY from the Mei Ah DVD of it. It's a flipper, and the subtitling is full of typos and punctuation errors ("Bum baby burn").

I KNOW! AND SHIT! What about when the guy's like "Where does he five?"

Hot-Handed Fury

02-15-2004, 01:41 AM

Am I the only one who absolutely HATED Visitor Q?

Its the one Miike film that I don't like.

Psychocandy

02-15-2004, 06:10 AM

Originally posted by _eraserhead
There's one rape/kill scene and a whole lot of necrophelia...NOT ALOT OF VIOLENT SEX!? But, I live int he U.S. so I wouldn't know anything about the BBFC...

It's been a while since I saw it and I was drunk when I posted my reply last night. :D

Gretchen_Ross

02-15-2004, 09:32 PM

has anyone read agitator: the cinema of takashi miike (http://www.midnighteye.com/features/agitator.shtml)? i'm a fan and would be interested to read it, but i'd like to know from other miike fans if it's any good before i plunk down the cash.

MickeyKnox

04-23-2004, 08:46 AM

Originally posted by JCR

On a more upbeat note, Full Metal Yakuza, Miikes insane homage to robocop, has been passed uncut in the uk and will be out on 23rd feb. according to play.com I saw this for the very first time last night, and i will say is that Miike is a very inventive filmmaker he bends genres and really loves to shock the audience and that is what attracts me to his movies, the ones i've seen so far this, Fudoh, Audition, Ichi the Killer, Dead or Alive, and Visitor Q all get high marks from me.

Psychocandy

04-26-2004, 09:21 AM

I emailed the BBFC to ask what progress had been made in assigning a certificate to Visitor Q. Here's my email...

Hi. I'm curious about what the current situation is with regards to the certification of Takashi Miike's "Visitor Q". I saw this movie about six months ago and had doubts that it would ever see the light of day unscathed in the UK. There has been an air of growing leniency over the last ten years with regards to censorship in the UK with more and more movies getting through the process uncut where they would previously have suffered at the hands of your organisation. I applaud the steps that have been taken to give the public what they want...to be treated like adults who can make their own decisions. Visitor Q, however, is particularly transgressive and almost certainly oversteps the line in several areas that your organisation still see as unfit for public consumption. Being that i'm both a fan of the movie and a fan of Miike's in general I was anxious to get my hands on a R2 DVD copy. However, the release date has now been put back a month and i'm assuming that the reason for the delay is censorship issues. Could you confirm whether or not this is indeed the case. Thanks in advance.

The reply left me gobsmacked. Here it is...

We recently passed the video of VISITOR Q '18' uncut (about a week ago, in fact). We didn't see anything in it particularly remarkable and certainly nothing unacceptable under our guidelines. If there is a delay it is not the result of any problems with the BBFC as we turned it around pretty quickly. In fact, we are now waiting for the distributors to submit finalised packaging for approval by the VPRC (Video Packaging Review Committee). Once that's done, it will be put on our website.

Changed days indeed.

JCR

05-06-2004, 07:55 PM

Anyone know what this just passed by the bbfc movie 'Last life in the universe' is about? The bbfc manage to list miike twice on the cast, as well as Riki Takeuchi.

http://www.bbfc.co.uk/website/Classified.nsf/ClassifiedWorks/9D7BC0044BB6B70680256E8C003C6987?OpenDocument

Psychocandy

05-06-2004, 08:14 PM

Interesting...

http://www.filmthreat.com/Reviews.asp?Id=5412

BTW...I couldn't find a single review for this movie that expressed anything less than total praise. I'll be checking it out.

my_name_is_neo

05-06-2004, 09:09 PM

I've never seen a Takashi Miike movie, but I've heard great things about them; what would you say is a good starting point with his movies?

Psychocandy

05-12-2004, 06:18 PM

Originally posted by my_name_is_neo
I've never seen a Takashi Miike movie, but I've heard great things about them; what would you say is a good starting point with his movies?

Hmm. I'd check out either Fudoh: The New Generation or alternatively Dead Or Alive. Audition is probably his best movie thus far but it's not really representative of his work. Gozu is very good but also very slow and full of surreal interludes. Graveyard Of Honour is, in my opinion a masterpiece, but isn't available in the UK or the US yet. Stunning though. If you check any of these out post your thoughts.

JCR

05-23-2004, 10:27 AM

Now I have seen everything- we have a bbfc rated 12 Takashi Miike movie! Sabu has been passed by artsmagic for forthcoming uk dvd release.

neo, I'd go for fudoh as my 1st miike to watch as well, it will give you a good idea what his films are like.

BadCoverVersion

05-23-2004, 03:29 PM

Originally posted by Psychocandy
It's been a while since I saw it and I was drunk when I posted my reply last night. :D

Really?

Originally posted by Psychocandy
They're treatment of Ichi The Killy

:D

Shucks, I wouldn't have thought a drop had passed yer lips Psycho.

Anyway...I'd go with either Dead Or Alive or Ichi funnily enough. But Audition is my personal fave...and my first taste of Miike if I remember correctly, plus, it's probably the most readily available.

Psychocandy

05-23-2004, 03:46 PM

Ichy the Killy...heh...that's some funny shite right there. God!!! I'm usually pretty damn thorough when it somes to checking my postd before hitting Submit Reply. :D

my_name_is_neo

05-25-2004, 08:29 PM

Thanks for the advice, Psycho, JCR, & BCV. Audition is the easiest-to-find Miike movie where I am (my local Blockbuster has it), but I can't find DOA or Fudoh anywhere - if they're not available on Region 1 DVD, I might have to resort to downloading them or something. I'll keep looking, though.

bob

06-08-2004, 05:44 PM

Full Metal Yakuza has just been released (with a few nice extras, and uncut) in R1.

Apparently the pixelisation was put there by Miike himself, according to our very own Arrow.

JCR

07-06-2004, 05:07 AM

For anyone who has not seen the izo trailer, I strongly recommend taking yer arse over to http://www.izo-movie.com/

I'd love to say other things about it, but I'm kinda speechless at the moment!

Psychocandy

07-07-2004, 07:12 PM

Originally posted by JCR
For anyone who has not seen the izo trailer, I strongly recommend taking yer arse over to http://www.izo-movie.com/

I'd love to say other things about it, but I'm kinda speechless at the moment!

One word...that's all...

COOL!!!!

Damned Martian

07-22-2004, 05:44 PM

I just saw my first Miike film: Audition

And though I did like it, I was ver very annoyed by the dream sequences towards the end. Am I the only one who had issues with them? I felt they were not only unnecessary, but completely out of place. And the second one is such a fool trap I almost felt insulted. It's as if he tried to manipulate you to feel some relief, but he did it in such an obvious way I not only didn't buy it, but it also killed good part of the tension he had created so far for me.

Anyway, it's a good film. I'm looking forward to see more of him to have a better picture of his skills. One good thing that you can already say about Miike even without seeing any of his films is that he's a hard worker (he has like 30 films in 10 years!). And he's also quite eclectic.

JCR

07-24-2004, 07:57 AM

Originally posted by Damned Martian
One good thing that you can already say about Miike even without seeing any of his films is that he's a hard worker (he has like 30 films in 10 years!). And he's also quite eclectic.

Actually that's selling him way short. If you count TV miniseries he made 36 films from 1995-2002. I'd say I know a lot about miike but I've only seen 19 of those 36!

JCR

09-15-2004, 02:36 PM

From ain't it shite:

"Screendaily has announced that Takashi Miike has signed up to direct Dragon's Fin Soup, his first ever English language film. The film is being described as "a fantasy comedy, telling of an encounter between an American ex-pat, a young Chinese woman living in Chinatown and a dragon" and is based on a novella by Thai writer S.P. Somtow. He will start work on this film after he completes his first children's film The Big Spook War which is being described as a Harry Potter-esque film about ghosts and goblins starring Go Go Yubari herself, Chiaki Kuriyama. Should be a great and unique set of films when they both finally come out."

Hmm......

Could be slightly problematic. Miike says in Agitator cinema of takashi miike he has problems with english because he doesn't get how the tone an english sentence is said in can change the sentence's meaning. I guess we'll just wait and see.

Psychocandy

09-25-2004, 07:15 PM

Here's a review of Miike's Izo courtesy of The Tokyo Times. Sounds very cool indeed. Some spoilers.

Swords are coming out all over. That's the impression I get watching recent swashbucklers from not only genre veterans like Kihachi Okamoto, who staged a comeback with the samurai comedy "Sukedachiya Sukeroku" in 2001, but also auteurs like Takeshi Kitano, who had never touched a sword in his directing career before remaking the Kenji Misumi classic "Zatoichi" -- and raking in 2.85 billion yen last year.

But Takashi Miike? He likes violence well enough, as shown by the creative ways he has injected everything from slow torture to mass slaughter into his more than 50 films, but somehow I never saw him doing the samurai thing. It would be like Quentin Tarantino making a cowboy movie.

Miike, however, likes trashing critical preconceptions about as much as he enjoys messing with prop blood -- thus his interest in "Izo," a genre-bending film whose sword-for-hire hero ends up battling not only his own demons, but the forces that rule the universe as well.

More than his first samurai movie, though, "Izo" is Miike's attempt to transcend genre conventions and make an outsized auteurist statement about big questions. His true role model is, not Tarantino, but Akira Kurosawa.

The element of play is hardly absent -- this is a Miike movie after all -- but he is also making his deepest examination yet into the nature of rage, violence and, by analogy, war. Can an anger that transcends death and time ever conquer its objects, which are finally as numberless as the stars? Can a man who has become a vengeful demon -- and abandoned his humanity -- find peace? Do the forces of darkness rule this world -- or is there hope that the forces of light might prevail? The idea of Miike, the ultimate cinematic bad boy, solemnly posing these questions may seem absurd, but he takes his cosmic interrogation to the limit -- and beyond.

This is less a new departure than an extension of his usual method -- Miike's been bucking against rules since the start of his career. But the old prankishness -- the sense that he's having a good laugh at the squares -- is largely gone, replaced by an intensity that batters the audience into dazed submission. "Izo" is the nearest cinematic equivalent to war. I wasn't watching this movie so much as embedded in it.

The first shots are fired -- or rather first stabs are made -- in 1865, when the shogunate is on its last legs, but still capable of punishing its enemies. One is Izo (Kazuya Nakayama), an assassin in the service of a Tosa lord and Imperial supporter (Ryosuke Miki). After killing dozens of the Shogun's men, Izo is captured and crucified. Though he wears a look of beatific resignation with his arms lashed to the cross, Izo cries out in human anger and pain as two pikesmen (Kenichi Endo and Susumu Terajima) pierce him fatally with their blades.

Instead of being extinguished, however, his rage propels him through space-time to present-day Tokyo, where his finds himself one with the city's homeless. Instead of resigning himself to his strange fate, he transforms into a new, improved killing machine, his entire soul enraged by his treatment in his past life. His response to the powers-that-be, whose predecessors put him to death, is the sword.

His ability to leap through time, slaughtering as he goes, attracts the attention of the lords of the universe, who are like a pre-war House of Peers, in office for eternity. Though hardly a threat to their power, his transdimensional killing spree is annoying, like static in the music of the spheres.

Izo, however, is not about to bow to anyone, even the lords of creation. From a feudal-era hit man, he has become a mad dog, afraid of nothing and no one. He even invades a temple sacred to the Peers and slaughters its head priest (Hiroyuki Nagato). Finally he rapes Mother Earth herself (Haruna Takase) and unleashes chaos on the world. The Peers, led by the Prime Minister (Beat Takeshi), decide to act, calling on allies from all eras, from samurai swordsmen to the yakuza.

From here on the film becomes an on-screen abattoir. Often in a Miike film -- see "Koroshiya Ichi" for a good example -- the extreme violence takes on a darkly comic tone, but in "Izo" there is no letup. Streaked with blood and gore, Kazuya Nakayama, as Izo, charges through scene after scene, slashing tirelessly away, as though he trained for the part like an Olympic athlete. His performance makes the exertions of Aya Ueto, who cut through 200 enemies in the climax of Ryuhei Kitamura's "Azumi" (2003), look like a stroll in the park.

There is a method in Miike's madness -- or at least a point. Together with scriptwriter Shigenori Takechi, a frequent Miike collaborator, he is making a larger statement about the insanity and futility of violence, murder, war, with Izo as the ultimate terrorist. In "staying the course" the Peers only fan his flames of rage. His lover from a previous life, Saya (Momoi Kaori), proposes another way -- sexual healing. There is also the Emperor (Ryuhei Matsuda), who wields the sort of power George Bush could only wish for.

Draw all the contemporary parallels you will, the pounding Miike delivers is wearing. I liked "Izo" for its ambition and sheer chutzpah -- but by the end, I was glad to get out of Baghdad.

The Japan Times: Aug. 18, 2004